Gas-producer



2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

Patented Feb. I4, |899.

C. ,E. S'. BURCH & A. L. KASSON. GAS PRODUCER.

(Application led Oct. 5, 1897.)

No. 6I9,538.

(No Model.)

W esses f- NITED STATES PATENT FFICE.

CHARLES EDWARD SHELBY BURCH AND ARTHUR LEWIS KASSON, OF SEATTLE,VASHINGTON.

GAS-PRODUCER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 619,538, dated February14, 1899. l

Application ledOctober 5, 1897. Serial No. 654,141. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern,.- L

Beit known that we, CHARLES EDWARD SHELBY BURCH and ARTHUR LiiwisKAssoN, citizens of the United States, residing at Seattle, in thecounty of King and State of Washington, have invented a new and usefulApparatus for Placer-Mining, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to a gas-prod ucer for an apparatus forplacer-mining especially designed for service in the cold regions of thenorth, where the ground is frozen for a major portion of the year andwhere it is consequently difcult to mine the earth; and the primaryobject that we have in view is to provide/"a simple and elicientapparatus for generating heat, which may be used as the agent forthawing the frozen ground to enable the same to be mined with picks orbars to good advantage during cold weather.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved generator bywhich a superheated combustible gas may be produced and supplied inlarge volumes from a central station to the miner or miners, such gasbeing produced very economically and rapidly from cheap fuel.

With these ends in view our invention consists in a generator consistingof retorts for the conversion of wood into gas and with superheatersoperatively connected with the retorts and arranged in such relation tothe furnace and the retorts as to be exposed to the direct action of theheat for the purpose of highly heating the gas produced by the action ofthe heat in the retorts on the substance therein; and the inventionfurther consists in the novel construction, combination, and arrangementof parts, as will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

To enable others to understand our invention, we have illustrated the-preferred embodiment thereof in the accompanying drawings, forming apart of this specication, and in which- Figure 1 is a perspective viewillustrating in a general way the mode of service of our generator for aplant for placer-mining. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse sectionalelevation through the generator on the plane indicated by the dottedline 2 2 of Fig. 3. Fig.-3 is a sectional plan view on the planeindicated by the dotted line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a diagrammaticView illustrating one means for thawing and Ventilating a mine.

Like numerals of reference denote correspending and like parts in eachof the several figures of the drawings.

In a plant for placer-mining in the cold goldbearing regions ofthe-north we employ a gasgenerator indicated in its entirety by thenumeral l in the drawings, and in connection with said generator weprovide an off-bearing line of asbestos-protected hose 2, which leadsthe highly-heated gas to a discharge-nozzle 3, which may be directed bythe miner against the frozen earth or soil in the mine for the purposeof thawing the earth to such an eX- tent as to be mined by picks or barsto good advantage.

We have thus far indicated in a general way the nature of the apparatuswith which our gas-generator is used, and we will now proceed to adetailed description of the gasgenerai-or shown by Figs. l to 3,inclusive, of the drawings. This gas-generator is designed to producegas from wood, as this substance is very cheap and found in abundance atthe sections of the country where mining is carried on. The generatorembodies a furnace 5, having the grates 6 and the division-wall 7, andon the masonry or brickworkof the furnace are erected the horizontalmetallic retorts 8 9, which are arranged in horizontal positions overthe combustion-chamber of the furnace and in parallel relationy to eachother. These retorts 8 9 are entirely independent one from the other,and each is constructed with a closed head at the rear end,'while thefront ends of said retorts are equipped with hinged doors, through whichthe fuel may be charged. Rising from the retorts, preferably at themiddle thereof, are the outlet-pipes l0 10', which are joined by thehorizontal connecting-pipe 12 through the medium of the unions orcouplings 1l, and said unions or the horizontal pipe 12 have the ventvalves 13, through which the smoke and vapors may be discharged at thebeginning of the operation of carbonizing the wood in the retorts. Tothis horizontal pipe 12 is connected an oit-bearing gas-pipe 15,preferably by means of a union 14, which is attached centrally to thepipe 12, and stop cocks or valves 16 are provided in this pipe 12 onopposite sides of the iinion 14c for the o-bearing pipe 15 in order tocut off communication of each retort with the obearing pipe whenever itis desired to charge either of the retorts with fuel.

W'ithin the walls of the generator-furnace are arranged the manifolds 1718, forming the su perheater,which lies between the gratebars of thefurnace and the retorts in order to expose the Wood-gas contained insaid superheater to the intense heat generated in thefurnacechamberorchambers. Themanifold 17 is situated below the retort 8,while the other manifold 18 is situated below the retort 9, and thesemanifolds are isolated one from the other by the intervening bridge ordivision Wall 7. Each manifold consists of a series of straight pipes ortubes connected in pairs by the return-headers 19, and said headers areprovided with removable plugs attached thereto in line with the passagethrough the pipes or tubes, so that the plugs may be removed to enableeasy access to be obtained to the pipes or {iues for the purpose ofcleaning the same with a brush or scraper of any sedimentary depositthat may accumulate in the pipes of the manifolds. The headers of thesuperheater-1nanifolds extend beyond the furnace-walls, so that they areexposed and ready access may be had to the removable plugs thereof.

The off-bearing pipe 15 from the connecting-pipe of the independentretorts leads to and is connected with one end of the manifold 17, andthe other end of this manifold 17 is coupled by a return-bend .2() toone end of the other manifold 18, said return-bend eX- tending aroundthe bridge or division wall of the furnace, as shown by Fig. 3. Thedescribed arrangement and connection of the manifolds and the obearinggas-pipe enables the gas from either or both of the retorts to firstcirculate through one manifold and then through the other manifold ofthe heater, thus exposing the gas to the direct action of the intenseheat in the generator-furnace and causing it to traverse a large area ofintenselyheated pipes or flues, whereby the gas is superheated before itis conducted to the discharge-nozzle to be used as the agent for thawingfrozen ground preparatory to mining the same.

As before indicated, our improved generator is designed for use in anapparatus for placer-mining, and in thisladaptation of the generator aline of hose 2 is coupled at one end to the manifold 18 of thesuperheater, and the other end of this line of hose is attached to theheel of the discharge-nozzle 3. Of course the line of hose may be of anydesired length suitable to lead from the generator erected on thesurface down into the mine where the miners are stationed, and in of thegas is very greatly augmented.

order to enable the hose which conducts the highly-heated gas to behandled by the operator we provide a hose which is protected by asbestosor other heat-resisting medium.

In the practical service of the apparatus the fires in the furnace arekindled and the `Wood is charged in one or both retorts, the

valve or valves 13 being opened at first to permit the smoke to escape,after which the vent-valves are closed. The gas evolved by thecarbonization of the Wood in the retort or retorts is conducted by thepipes to the manifold 17,through which the gas flows to the othermanifold 18, and thence to the line of hose 2, by which the gas isconducted to the nozzle 3. The gas is highly heated in its passagethrough the pipes or iiues of the manifolds, because the latter areexposed to the direct action of the heat in the furnace; but the retortsare exposed sufficiently to the furnace heat to properly carbonize theWood charged therein and evolve from the wood a gas which is utilized inour plant for delivery at the nozzle to perform useful service. The flowof gas from the hose-line 2 into the chamber of the nozzle createstherein a suction to draw in the proper volume of atmospheric airnecessary to support combustion, and this is aided by the supply ofhydrocarbon fuel obtained from the pipe 22 and the jet 23. The operatoris able to direct the delivery-nozzle so as to apply the heat and flameagainst the frozen soil, so as to thaw the latter sufficiently to enableit to be mined by picks, bars, or other implements or machinery.

In our apparatus the retorts are placed in such a manner and soconnected together that their action is reciprocal, thereby enablingacontinuous iiame of uniform size and force to be maintained at allstages of the operation. The blast of flame is maintained at the nozzlefor useful service by the pressure of the gas in the retort andsuperheater manifolds, and the volume of the iiame is augmented by theaddition of the atmospheric air and the hydrocarbon fuel. The gas isproduced directly from wood or other gas-producing substance and is usedin the performance of useful Work without purification other thanpassing it through the manifolds of the superheater, by which theintensity of heat The delivery-nozzle has its chamber of large capacityto enable the gas to expand therein after issuing from the line of hose,and with the superheated gas is combined the air and hydrocarbon fuel,thus bringing the gas or admixture to a condition in which it may beignited before final discharge from the orfice of the delivery-nozzle.

The apparatus may also be employed for the purpose of thawing out aVentilatingshaft, as represented in Fig. 4. This ventilating-shaft maybe equipped with a partition or Wall to divide the shaft into two parts,through one of which fresh air may be admitted to the shaft and themine, While the IZO foul air may be discharged from the mine through theother part of the shaft. In case the Ventilating-shaft should becomefrozen and closed against the ingress and egress of air thedelivery-nozzle may be directed against the ice or other debris for thepurpose of thawing the same and enabling the shaft to be opened forventilation purposes.

It is evident that changes in the formand proportion of parts and in thedetails of construction of the plant herein described may be made by askilled mechanic without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus fully described our invention, what we claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. A gas-producer comprising a furnace, independent retorts supportedtherein, a series of superheater-manifolds arranged between the retortsand the furnace-grate and having the manifolds thereof coupled in seriesfor the continued circulation of gas, and valved connections between theindependent retorts and the superheater-manifolds whereby the gas fromeither of the retorts may be caused to traverse the entire area of thesuperheatermanifolds, substantially as described.

2. A gas-producer comprising a verticallydivided furnace, theindependent retorts situated in the respective compartments of saidfurnace and adapted for operation separately, the superheater havingitsmanifolds arranged in the respective compartments of the divided furnaceand coupled in series for the continued circulation of gas through allthe manifolds, and valved connections between the independent retortsand the superheater whereby the gas from either retortl may traverse theentire series of manifolds of said superheater, substantially asdescribed.

A gas-producer comprisinga furnace,the independent retorts therein, theoutlet-pipes connected with said retorts and having the vent-valves, atransverse pipe, 12, coupled to the outlet-pipes within the vent-valvesthereof and provided with the independent stopcocks, a superheater, anda connecting-pipe attached to the branch pipe between the independentstop-cocks thereof and attached to the superheater, substantially asdescribed.

4. A gas-producer comprising a furnace, in-

dependent retorts supported in isolated compartments of said furnace andeach opening Ythrough one end of the latter, a horizontal pipe connectedwith both retorts and provided with vent-valves for the respectiveretorts, an off-bearing gas-pipe attached to said horizontal pipe,valves in said horizontal pipe on opposite sides of the point ofattachment of the OIT-bearing pipe thereto, and a superheater situatedwithin the furnace below the retort and coupled with the off-bearingpipe, substantially as described.

5. A gas-producer comprising a verticallydivided furnace, independentretorts situated in the respective compartments thereof, the superheaterhaving its manifolds arranged within the furnace compartments betweenthe retorts and the grates and said manifolds connected in series by areturn-elbow which spans the division-wall o f the furnace, valvedconnections between said retorts and one end of a superheater-manifoldto direct the gas from either retort through the connected series ofsuperheater-manifolds, substantially as described.

v 6. A gas-producer comprisingafurnace provided with adividing-partition and forming isolated compartments therein,independent retorts within said isolated compartments of the furnace andeach having its end which protrudes from the furnace closed by a door,the su perheatin g-manifolds supported Within said compartments of thefurnace below the retorts and exposed to the direct contact of the iiameand products of combustion therein, a return-bend connection between theisolated manifolds for connecting them in series, a horizontal pipesituated exteriorly to the furnace and connected with both retorts,controlling-valves in said horizontal pipe, and an off-bearing pipeleading from said horizontal pipe to one of the manifolds, for thepurposes described, substantially as set forth.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own we have heretoaffixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES EDWARD SHELBY BURCH. ARTHUR LEWIS KASSON. Witnesses:

S. FOSTER KELLEY, FRED. J. AIKENs.

